Cute Wife Gourmet

Chapter 169 You must listen to me

"You are fully responsible for this." Xia Youshi added.

Ye Jiayao said without hesitation: "Don't worry, mother, I will make the wedding banquet more lively than the birthday banquet at the Helian Palace."

Xia Youshi was stunned for a moment. She agreed so readily. Wasn't she afraid that she wouldn't give the money?
"Don't you want to ask who paid for the money?" asked Xia Youshi.

Ye Jiayao smiled and said, "Chunfeng is Chunyu's biological brother. Chunyu only has this one biological brother, so it's only right that we pay for the banquet. Let's do it this way. I'll pay for the banquet."

Originally, she and Chunyu were planning to pay 80,000 taels of silver. Since they had taken on the task, they didn't have to pay the 80,000 taels. It would be the same.

Xia Youshi was secretly surprised. She didn't expect her daughter-in-law to be so generous, and she especially emphasized her brother, which was very much to her liking. However, such a wedding banquet would cost tens of thousands of taels of silver even if she saved money!

"It's enough that you have this intention. I will pay for it myself. You just need to help me do it in a decent way and save some money." Xia Youshi said.

"Mother, I am serious. Yesterday I discussed with Chunyu to see if I could help in any way. Other daughters-in-law can't do it, but I am good at preparing banquets. The money doesn't matter. Tianshangju's profit this month can be used to pay it back first. The money owed can be paid back slowly. It's not a big deal." Ye Jiayao said.

Mother Sun said, "Madam, since the Second Young Madam has this intention, you should just agree to it!"

Xia Youshi was silent for a moment and said, "Then I'll leave it to you. If the silver is not enough, tell me."

Ye Jiayao nodded happily: "Mother, can you promise me one thing?"

Xia Youshi said, "You say."

"Can you tell others that you paid for the wedding banquet and I'll just do the work?"

Xia Youshi raised her eyebrows: "What's the point?"

Ye Jiayao smiled and said, "I'm afraid my elder brother and his wife will be embarrassed if they find out. I'm afraid that my elder sister-in-law's embroidery shop won't be doing well."

"But I heard her say that business is very good!" said Mother Sun.

Ye Jiayao pretended to be surprised: "No way, otherwise, can Big Brother eat on credit?"

Xia Youshi's eyes darkened: "Is he on credit in heaven?"

Ye Jiayao said, "It doesn't matter if my brothers come to eat a few times. It's rare. But I looked at the account book today and found that my eldest brother has borrowed 2,700 to 2,800 taels of silver this month. I thought his family was in trouble."

Xia Youshi understood what was going on and couldn't help feeling a little angry. She just couldn't stand Chunli's behavior. He always took advantage of others and had the same temper as his third uncle. She even doubted whether Chunli was the master's child.

"I know about this matter. You can go back first!" Xia Youshi said coldly.

Ye Jiayao curled her lips as she went out. It would depend on whether Xia Youshi would take care of this matter. If no one cared, she would do it herself.

"It's shameful to be such a useless person." Xia Youshi was angry.

"Young Master's behavior is indeed a bit..." Mother Sun sighed.

"He always asks Chunyu and Chunfeng to borrow money privately. Don't think I know nothing. He studies all day long and just fiddles with his broken bottles and stones. Sooner or later, he will squander our family fortune." Xia Youshi said angrily. Chunli had been rated as average in the Hanlin Academy for four consecutive years, and this was done to save face for her father and the Marquis of Jing'an's Mansion. Otherwise, he would have been kicked out of the Hanlin Academy long ago.

"The second young master has the same temper as the old master. He never says a word even when his brothers suffer a little loss. But this is not a solution. The second young mistress is in an even more difficult situation. She doesn't seem to be a petty person. It must be that the eldest young master has gone too far." Mother Sun said.

Xia Youshi snorted coldly, "Let the master take care of this matter himself."

Ye Jiayao returned to her room, washed up, and took out the farm account book to look at it. She thought being a young lady would be an easy job, but it turned out to be no easier than being a cook in Tianshangju.

Qiao Xi brought the Tremella soup: "Second Madam, this is stewed in the kitchen."

Ye Jiayao thought about the small kitchen, so she asked Qiao Xi, "Is there a small kitchen in the mansion?"

Qiao Xi said, "No, it's all cooked in the big kitchen. When the eldest young lady was pregnant, she wanted to build a small kitchen, but the Madam didn't agree."

This is troublesome. How can she study the dishes? The Crown Princess hasn't sent any delicious food to her in several days.

After a while, Chunyu came back with a serious expression.

Qiao Xi helped him undress. Chunyu washed his face and came out of the bathroom. Qiao Xi had already made hot tea for him.

Xia Chunyu waved his hand and asked her to go out.

"Is the situation bad?" Ye Jiayao asked with concern.

Xia Chunyu lifted up the tea leaves floating on the top, took a sip, and sighed, "Helian Xuan is preparing to go to war. If he doesn't go, I'm afraid he won't be able to handle it. The front line has been defeated one after another, and Simon Khan is under siege. If the royal court is breached and the Simon kingship falls into the hands of Prince Azari, then we in Huai Song will have no peace. Azari has always opposed the marriage between Simon and Huai Song. He is ambitious and warlike."

"Then... are you going?" Ye Jiayao asked worriedly. She knew that Chunyu and Helian Xuan had always been good partners. Although Chunyu was a palace guard, he also often went on expeditions.

Xia Chunyu looked at Ye Jiayao. He wanted to go with Helian Xuan, but he was worried about her because Liuli would be coming in soon. "Helian Xuan said he would go first and we'll talk if he needs me," Xia Chunyu said.

"Oh..." Ye Jiayao secretly breathed a sigh of relief. She didn't want him to go. War was too risky. Swords and guns were blind. And it sounded like the Simons were very cruel. They were probably similar to the Turks in history. Nomadic peoples were brave and warlike, and their tactics were flexible and mobile, so it was difficult to eliminate them.

"What are you looking at?" Xia Chunyu came over and took a look.

"The farm's account books."

"Do you see what's going on?"

"Not yet. We'll know after comparison. Is it only your farm that has a bad harvest or is everyone else's farm bad?" Ye Jiayao felt a headache when she saw this. She planned to find some time to ask Zhao Qixuan.

"By the way, let me tell you something. Mother said today that I would be in charge of hosting Chunfeng's wedding banquet, and I have already agreed to do so, including all the expenses. So, I didn't give out the 80,000 taels of silver note." Ye Jiayao said.

Xia Chunyu nodded: "It's just that you will have to work hard again."

"It's nothing to do with this little bit of hard work. I always feel sorry for Chunfeng, so let's take this as compensation! This part of the cost will be shared equally between you and me."

Xia Chunyu raised his eyebrows slightly and looked at her with a smile: "So generous?"

"Don't laugh yet, here comes the petty thing. I was at Tianshangju today and looked at this month's account book. Big brother can be considered a frequent visitor to Tianshangju!" Ye Jiayao said sarcastically.

Xia Chunyu looked unnatural: "Well... after all, he is still my brother."

"I know you're in a difficult situation. Anyone would have a headache if they had such an overconfident brother. It's okay for him to come and eat a few meals occasionally, but he comes so often! Not only does he eat for free, but he also treats you. Does he really think this restaurant is his own property? If it is really his property, he would be reluctant to eat there."

"I also heard that he often asked you to borrow money. Have you ever paid him back?" Ye Jiayao asked.

Xia Chunyu hesitated and said, "Why do brothers care so much about each other?"

Ye Jiayao smiled, as bright as a flower: "You are so generous, then fine, whatever your brother eats at the restaurant will be yours, and it will be deducted from your share of the profit. I am not that generous."

"Some people take politeness as a blessing. We should share it. If he does that, do we have to get all our clothes from his embroidery workshop? Will he agree? Brothers should talk about friendship, but there must be a limit to everything. It also depends on what the matter is. Next time he comes to you again, you can put the blame on me and I will deal with him. If you dare to agree to it in private and make me unhappy, I will never let you go." Ye Jiayao warned him sternly.

Xia Chunyu was stunned. How fierce! He used his own money and didn't ask her to pay for it. Is it necessary?
Ye Jiayao saw through his thoughts at a glance and smiled coldly: "Don't say that it's your money and has nothing to do with me. I tell you, I hate people who are taken advantage of the most. No one's money is picked up for free. It's all earned through hard work. I would rather give it to the poor than to be so shameless as to feed them. Do you think what I said is unpleasant? You're still glaring? You glare? If you glare again, don't enter this room anymore."

Xia Chunyu immediately retracted his gaze and murmured, "I didn't glare at you. My eyes are big anyway."

"I'm not kidding you. You have to express your attitude to me today." Ye Jiayao said aggressively.

In fact, Xia Chunyu was also troubled by his elder brother's matter, but every time his elder brother came to borrow money with a shy smile, he was embarrassed to refuse.

"You are the boss, you make the decision." Xia Chunyu didn't care: "But don't make it too awkward, it will make everyone look bad."

"Bah, does he have the nerve? Would someone with the nerve do such a thing?" Ye Jiayao rolled her eyes.

"Look at you, don't say such harsh words! You have a lot of ideas, can we solve this peacefully?" Xia Chunyu was really afraid that she would ignore it.

"Do you think I'm stupid? I've already told mother about this matter in a very tactful way. Let mother worry about it."

Xia Chunyu was dumbfounded: "What? You told Mom? Isn't this just making things difficult for Mom?"

"Haha, I guess your mother is very happy now. You can take this opportunity to teach your father a lesson. Your third uncle is of the same character as your eldest brother." Ye Jiayao said disapprovingly.

Xia Chunyu was speechless.

"It's best to make things clear early on about things like this, unless you plan to let him cheat you for the rest of your life. Otherwise, if you don't lend me money or give me credit, you'll end up in the wrong place. Look at Chunfeng, he refused straightforwardly, and your brother became obedient and didn't blame him. If you want peace at home, everyone should be more considerate of themselves." Ye Jiayao closed the account book and climbed into bed to sleep.

Xia Chunyu sat there pondering for a long time. What Yaoyao said made sense, but it would not be appropriate to continue like this in the long run.

"Yaoyao, Yaoyao..." Xia Chunyu put down the teacup and got on the bed.

"What?" Ye Jiayao asked unhappily.

"Men are in charge of external affairs, while women are in charge of internal affairs. You have the final say on family matters from now on." Xia Chunyu said with a smile.

Ye Jiayao then turned around and said, "It's agreed that you and I will form a united front."

Xia Chunyu nodded: "I firmly support you."

Ye Jiayao nuzzled into his arms contentedly and said coquettishly, "Turn off the lights."

Xia Chunyu was overjoyed. He quickly turned off the lights, then excitedly went to bed and hugged her.

(End of this chapter)